


Faith in the World

by aIIegro



Series: rainbow six fics [2]
Category: Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six (Video Games)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Comfort, Fluff, M/M, Mentions of Death, Violence, White masks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-15
Updated: 2020-01-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 16:01:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22269829
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aIIegro/pseuds/aIIegro
Summary: Doc faces his failures. Lion wants to help.
Relationships: Olivier “Lion” Flament/Gustave “Doc” Kateb
Series: rainbow six fics [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1598680
Comments: 1
Kudos: 56





	Faith in the World

Lion prays. Gustave Kateb does not. Perhaps not because he doesn’t believe. Rather, he _can’t_. He can’t pray for the forty-nine dead recruits, or the four hundred ninety-seven dead terrorists, or the fifty-six human mutants he killed in Truth or Consequences. The fifty-six _humans._ He can’t do it because they’re dead. They’re dead, and there is nothing to be done about it now, no amount of praying and no amount of stim shots can bring the dead to life. There’s no going back now, Doc is off the deep end. Whispers of his mother’s Arabic prayers echo somewhere within him. He wonders if he is hearing her from his family home in France, and if she prays for him while he’s away. He wonders if she’ll pray for him, even when he’s killed in action. 

_Life after death is a joke_ , Doc thinks bitterly throughout this mission. ( _Your job is to secure the area and locate the biohazard container_ , the mission reports told him.) He ignores the terrorists mowed down by his bullets, slowly but surely building his internal walls. There was no more room for guilt. These times of slaughter became Gustave’s way of running. It is black and white. Enemies are enemies, and allies are allies. He knows what he is doing. He can’t pray. Not anymore, at least. 

Lion recites Bible passages in his head, not taking his eyes off of the back of Doc’s head as they rush in. He shifts his gaze as they delve further into the building, peeking corners and covering other operators’ backs. He doesn’t like the hollow look in Doc’s eyes, but he can’t stop to question it yet because Montagne wants him to scan from his drone. The scan is complete. EE-ONE-D is pulling too much current, Twitch warns him over comms. She tells him he can’t scan again. Gilles’ mouth is set in a hard line. They already have one gadget out of commission. Twitch hovering in a helicopter, piloting her shock drone and watching Olivier’s. Lion is not doing fine. Not fine. Both him and Gilles are on the verge of being overrun, and Gustave has run too far ahead, leaving the other two trailing too far behind. Lion is not fine. 

Gustave doesn’t stop for anyone. The two Spetsnaz operators on the other side have found the container. Fuze warns that he’s setting a cluster charge. Gustave keeps going. He hasn’t used any stims and can no longer hear the clanking of Gilles’ shield behind him. Olivier’s voice crackles over comms, the sound of gunfire and bullets hitting Le Roc almost rendering the audio deafening. “You’re going too far, mon ami. We’re still behind you.” Without responding, Doc turns around and heads back to Lion and Montagne, much to Olivier’s relief. The three clear the room, a shock drone regarding them carefully in the doorway, letting them know that the hallway is free of terrorists. Lion nurses a few grazes on his arms and legs, mumbling a “no thank you” when Doc offers a stim in an oddly monotonous voice. There’s still no time for Olivier to question it; they’re on the move again. He is told that Rook and a group of recruits are flanking the last group of terrorists. 

Slowly creeping towards the objective, the three met up with Fuze and Glaz. It was calm until Rook’s voice calls for help. His unit of recruits was cornered by the remaining enemies. The Russians swear and Twitch tells the rest of the GIGN that Doc, Fuze, and Lion should stay to secure the objective. Montagne and Glaz are sent to help the losing unit. The three staying back continue covering doorways, clearly tense about the fate of a fellow operator. 

“Kateb,” Olivier rumbles after a few minutes, still holding his angle. “Why did you run ahead? You’re lucky I called you in direct comms. Six would have thrown a fit.”

“Was clearing your path,” Gustave states, reloading his MP5. 

“This is not the time or the place to space out and go off on your own. You’re the one who gives us shit for doing it, what gives you the right?”

“It won’t happen again.”

Something is wrong, Lion confirms. Before he can interrogate him, Rook calls for the medic. Coast is clear, but one recruit is dead and another on the brink of bleeding out. Lion isn’t quite as fazed by it, as harsh as it may sound, but as he sprints towards the room with Fuze and Doc, he sees Gilles slumped against a wall, defeatedly watching Julien keep pressure on a coughing recruit. At the sight of loss, Lion prays silently, rubbing a rosary tucked in his pocket. Julien looks up at him, pain and turmoil deep in his eyes, almost pleading. Doc brushes past him, and Lion realizes that, after getting a good look at his face, the expression he had the entire operation was a dazed one. He still couldn’t figure it out. Something is wrong. 

Rook staggers out of the way, and the situation becomes tense, a moment of silence deafening those in the room. Everyone holds their breath, watching Gustave work tirelessly. 

Lion prays harder, hope raging inside him. 

Gustave wants to sink into the ground and die. 

It becomes a blur. Defibrillator, needles, stim shot, defibrillator, pulse jump, stitches, stim shot, flatline. 

A collective breath is let out in disappointment and Gustave’s head reels. They are ready for extraction. Gustave’s not ready. Not ready to stand, not ready to greet the wake up call that is the dead body in front of him. 

The tag reads the name “Jonathan Inglewood.” Doc reads “failure.” He closes his eyes. 

Olivier has never seen Gustave cry. He didn’t cry when his colleagues died partially because of Olivier. He didn’t cry whenever they fought bitterly before they repaired their relationship. He didn’t cry when he went M.I.A. during an earlier mission, only to be found downed in a corner, bleeding out. It changes. 

Gustave remains kneeling beside the rapidly cooling body of Jonathan. He’s shaking, but his hands are steady. The others have cleared out with the other dead recruit to plan evac. Olivier bends down, barely containing his shock and concern when he sees the other Frenchman silently crying. 

“Get up, Kateb,” Lion says, following Doc’s line of sight to the blood on his previously white gloves. He places a hand on Gustave’s shoulder, shaking him a little.

“Go ahead.” He opens his eyes. 

“What? No, let’s go, I’ll help you carry it.”

“Do it myself,” Gustave mumbles, tripping over words.

“Gustave,” Olivier’s tone softens, crouching to get on eye level with the other man. “We have to leave now. We’re not leaving you behind.”

The last part seems to wake Doc a little. He lifts his head slowly, tired from his unhelpful attempt to save Jonathan. “Maybe you should.” God, it sounds so pathetic saying it, but Gustave isn’t stupid. He knows he has a job to do for Rainbow, no matter how useless he thinks he is.

“No,” Lion responds, gentle but firm. He loops the medic’s arm over his shoulder and forces him to stand, half dragging him out of the room. They trek down the hall in solemn silence until Olivier comms Montagne to pick up Jonathan. Gustave tenses when Lion refers to the body as an “it.” Gilles nods at the two curtly as he passes them quickly.

Everyone waits for Gilles at the helicopter. Twitch is sitting inside, watching the others organize before getting in. Her drones are sitting beside her. Once everyone is inside, the two bodies lying in the back, Lion collects EE-ONE-D. Gustave leans against him, still crying. No one says anything, although Olivier can’t tell if it’s because they too are distracted or if they didn’t want to interrupt. 

The ride back to base is silent.

Gustave sticks with Olivier until they reach the dorms. Olivier lays him on his bed and sits next to him. Doc has been wordless the entire time, only giving half-hearted shrugs to anything. Olivier coughs a little to clear his throat.

“I know something is bothering you,” he says awkwardly, unsure of what to say. “And I know that you’ve been, er, _funny_ since New Mexico, but what’s wrong?”

Gustave eyes Olivier from his position, gaze steady. “I lose more than I win.” It’s a little too vague for Lion, but he makes the best inferences he can. 

“No one expects you to save everyone, if that’s what you’re talking about.”

“No. I have killed more than I have saved.”

“Terrorists? Merde, you knew that you would have to in this line of work. If it bothers you, why would you sign up?”

“Not the terrorists,” Gustave bites back, looking more alive, more troubled. “The mutants back in New Mexico. Civilians, people we’re supposed to protect. Recruits that die.”

”No one expects you to save everyone,” Lion repeats. “And the mutants would have killed you without hesitation. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have been able to get the doctor and find that vaccine.”

“But…” Gustave trailed off, fingers tracing the creases in the bedspread. 

“I get you want to help everyone,” Olivier presses on, scooting closer to the other man. “And I understand that you don’t want to take lives, but you have to see each situation at face value. More people would’ve died without your efforts in New Mexico, but to start you had to kill the infected. It fucking sucks, but your intentions were in the right place.” He is not the most articulate, but he can see that Doc is reassured by him. 

Gustave hums, slowly sitting up. With great hesitation, he reaches for Olivier’s shoulder, tugging at the hoodie he had changed into earlier. Lion scoots closer, awkwardly trying to sit next to him. He gently reaches for Gustave’s hand, rubbing small circles on the back with his thumb. 

Neither say anything for a long time, but as the hours pass, they come closer and closer together. Gustave is tucked into the crook of Olivier’s neck. Lost in their own worlds, they cradle each other as the time between night and early morning passes. Gustave, although not showing it, finds immense relief in Olivier’s arms. His crying has long since stopped, the hurt inside of him replaced by a hollow sense of acceptance and responsibility, as well as a persistent surge of affection for Olivier. 

It hurts, it really does. The pain grasps Gustave’s heart in guilt-ridden agony, but Olivier, the stubborn bastard, is too sure that he can help the other Frenchman. He isn’t wrong. In a world of death and sacrifice and carnage and bloodshed, Olivier sits amongst it all. He clings to his faith and blindly hopes for an almighty being to do what he must. Gustave admires him for it, and finds himself slowly being taught to have that same faith in the world, regardless of ties to any religion. He holds onto his optimism the same way Olivier remains devout. They hope for the best now, and they hope _together_. Lion prays. Gustave Kateb does not.

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr - yonaih
> 
> xox <3


End file.
